Kalyan Jyoti Sengupta, C.J.

1. First mentioned writ petition (W.P. No.1873 of 2015) (hereinafter referred to as ‘first writ petition’) has been filed by the A.P. State Council of Higher Education which is a statutory body formed and constituted under the Act called the Andhra Pradesh State Council of Higher Education Act, 1988 (hereinafter referred to as ‘Act, 1988’) against the Union of India, the State Bank of Hyderabad, the State of Telangana and the Telangana State Council of Higher Education. Second one (W.P.No.2882 of 2015) has been filed subsequently by the State of Telangana against the Union of India, the State of Andhra Pradesh and the A.P. State Council of Higher Education (in short, ‘APSC’).

2. The first writ petition (W.P.No.1873 of 2015) has been filed seeking relief against the Bank who decided to stop the operation of Bank account maintained by APSC. There would not have been any difficulty to decide this matter on fact as well as law, had there been no second writ petition (W.P.No.2882 of 2015) filed by the Telangana State Council of Higher Education (hereinafter referred to as ‘TSC’). Therefore, both the writ petitions are consolidated and heard out analogously.

3. The factual aspects of both the matters are more or less the same, and the same is summarized as follows.

The APSC came into being on publication of Act, 1988 in the A.P. Gazette on 21.04.1988, followed by G.O.Ms.No.199, Education Department, dated 17.05.1988 under the provision of Section 3 of Act 1988. As such, it is a separate statutory and autonomous body having perpetual seal and succession; and it can sue and be sued. By and under the aforesaid Act, 1988, this Council has the exclusive authority for conducting various common entrance examination tests namely (i) Engineering and Medical Common Entrance Test (EAMCET) for admission of students into Engineering, Medicine and Agriculture, Pharmacy (ii) Integrated Common Entrance Test (ICET) for admission of students into MBA and MCA (iii) Education Common Entrance Test (EDCET) for admission of students into B.Ed. (Bachelor of Education) (iv) Engineering Common Entrance Test (ECET) for admission of Diploma holders and B.Sc., students into Engineering and Pharmacy (v) Physical Education Common Entrance Test (PECET) for admission of students into Physical Education Programmes (vi) Law Common Entrance Test (LAWCET) for admission of students into 3 year and 5 year Law Course (vii) Post Graduate Law Common Entrance Test (PGLCET) for admission of students into LLM (viii) Post Graduate Common Entrance Test (PGCET) for admission of students into M.Tech. and M. Pharm.

4. On 20.01.2015, by a written communication, State Bank of Hyderabad informed that they have decided not to allow the APSC to operate the Saving Bank A/c. Nos.521889272278 and 62009828659 maintained in Shantinagar Branch. By the said communication, it is informed that the TSC has objected to such operation. It is asserted by APSC that this decision of the Bank is high-handed, arbitrary and illegal. The Bank has no authority to refuse to operate the Bank account as there has been no garnishee order or order of the appropriate Court restraining operation of the Bank account. It is alleged that the claim and contention of the TSC is untenable under law.

5. In the second writ petition (W.P.No.2882 of 2015) it has been stated that the then State of Andhra Pradesh has been bifurcated into two States namely, State of Andhra Pradesh and State of Telangana under the Andhra Pradesh Reorganization Act, 2014 (hereinafter referred to as ‘Act, 2014’). Under Sections 3 & 4 of Act, 2014, with effect from the appointed day i.e., 02.06.2014, these two States are functioning as separate and independent States. The Act, 2014 provides for taking various measures to effectuate smooth functioning of the two independent States. One of the measures is the method of functioning of the existing State institutions on and from the appointed day. The status and func